Track-gage retainer and adjuster



S. ENGLISH.

TRACK GAGE RETAlNER AND ADJUSTER.

APPucATlN FILED ocT. 5. 1920.

1,363, 100. l, Patented Deo. 21.1920.

. 2 SHEETS-SHEET l S. ENGLISH.

TRACK GAGE RETAINER AND ADJUSTER.

APPLICATION FILED OCT. 5r 1920.

Patented Dec. 21, 1920.

Sande/Eff /ffm l Y Wajewww ATTORNEY WITNBS:

Uhli'il STFMS SAMUEL ENGLISH, or rrrrssnnen, PENNSYLVANIA.

TRACK-GAGE RETAINER AND ADJUSTER.

Application filed October 5, 1920.

.To all whom t may concern 13e it known that l, SAMUEL ENGLISH, a citizen oi the United States, residing at Pittsburgh, in the county of Allegheny and State of Pennsylvania, have invented new and useful improvements in Tiacl-Gage Retainers and Adjusters, of which the following is a specilication.

This invention relates to railwaysl and has for its object the provision of gage retaining means comprising har members snitably connected and carrying at their ends members engaging against the outer side of the webs of the rails of the traclway whereby to prevent spreading of the rails, one of these rail engag ig members having associated 'therewith a wedge adapted to he driven in whereby to correct or adjust tie gage of the track, the wedge nieniher being serrated to prevent slipping thereof.

in important object is the provision or a device ot this character which may have associated therewith other' members engaging against the inner sides of the rail webs and previded with wedge members, these inner members being' designed to prevent twisting oit' the rails or inward buckling oit 'the trackway ior any reason.

An additional oh'iect the provision or' a structure of this character which will be simple and inexpencfve in iminntacture and installation, which will be highly eilicient for the purpose speciied, which may also be used as a temporary repair tor a broken rail, and which will he a general improvement inthe art.

With the above and other objects and advantages in view, the invention consists in the details or construction to he hereinafter more t'ully described and claimed, and illustrated in the accompanying drawings in which- Figure l is a plan view oi my device associated with rails and used simply for preventing spreading of the rails, one et the rails being shown in horizontal section,

F ig. 2 is a cross sectional view through the rails showing my device in side elevation,

Fig. 3 is an enlarged 'face view of the outer rail engaging memberv` Fig. 4f is a detail view of the wedge memher,

Fig. 5 is a view similar to l showing Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Dec. 2, 1920.

semi no. 414,734.

the device arranged for preventing inward buolling as well as spreading of the rails,

Fig. (S is a cross sectional view through the rails showing a side elevation of the device in this term, and

Fig. 'i' is a detail perspective view oi one of the removable members engaging against the inner sides oi' the rails.l Y

leferring more particularly to the drawings, the letter er designates rails of a railway. in carrying out my invention l provide a pair of hars l0 provided at their inner ends with holes ll and adapted to be cennected by plates l2 carrying holte 13 p; tsing through the holes ll. At their outer ends these hars l() are widened, shown at lei, and their extremities are formed with l'ipward extensions l5 which are curved upwardly and which have their side edges also curved. rlhese extensions i5 are undercut, as shown at 1G, it'or the reception of thehases of the rails, as clearly shown in Fig. 2. ri`hese extensions lo are of' a iieight to fit snugly between the hase and ball o' the rails in abutting engagement with the web. The face l? which abuts the web is formed with a T-shaped recess 18.

ln order that the gage of the track may he adjusted, l provide a wedge member 19 which is T-shaped in cross section and which is slidahle within the recess or groove 18 and this wedge member has its side toward the rail serrated, as shown at 20, whereby to preiei'it retrograde slipping. The outer rib 2l oi the wedge is :termed with a plurality et holes 22 'through any one of which may he inserted a. pin whereby to prevent retrograde movement of the wedge aiter it is driven into position, it being understood that this pin must he placed within the hole nearest the far side of the extension l5. `When the device is used simply as a gage retainer and anti-spreading device. it is apparent that only one et the extensions i5 need he provided with a recess i8 and wedge memher 19. When the wedge member is driven in to contract the gage, the rail is moved ont of. engagement with the surface 17 and is engaged only hy the wedge.

1When it is desired to use the device for preventing buckling or twisting of the rails as well as spreading, I make use of rail engaging block members 24, as shown in Figs. 5, 6 and 7. Each of these block members is similar to the extension 15 and is secured upon the widened portion 14C of the bar 10 by means of suitable bolts 25 which pass through the block member and through holes 26 in the bar. Each of these members 2a is formed on its face 27 toward the rail web with a T-shaped recess 28 corresponding to the recess 18 and is also provided with teeth 29.

When the device is used for preventing inward buckling as well as spreading of the rails, l provide a wedge member 30 within each of the recesses 28, this wedge member 30 being identical with the wedge member 19 and being held in position by a pin passing through selected holes in the same manner.

In the event that a rail is broken, it is apparent that my device may be used as a temporary repair. 1n such use employ my device and dispose it so that the break in the rail is disposed between the extension 15 and the block 24 and in this way it will be seen that the broken ends may be held together until the proper repair may beV made or until the rail is replaced.

While have shown and described the preferred embodiment of my invention, it is of course to be understood that i reserve the right to make such changes in the form, con struction, and arrangement of parts as will not depart from the spirit of the invention or the scope of the subjoined claims.

Having thus described my invention, I claim:

1. A device of the character described comprising a pair of bars secured in end to end relation and disposable transversely of the trackway beneath track rails, an upward extension formed at the outer end of each bar and having an undercut recessl for the reception of the base of a rail and having a flat face disposable against the cuter side of the rail web, the flat face of one of said extensions being formed with a recess T- shaped in cross section, and a wedge member slidab'le within said recess and having its face engaging the rail web serrated, and means for maintaining the wedge in adjusted position.

2.k A device of the character described comprising` a pair of bars secured in end to end relation and disposable transversely of a trackway beneath track rails, an upward extension formed at the outer end of each bar and having an undercut recess for the reception of the base of a rail and having` a iiat face disposable against the outer side of the rail web, the flat face of one of said extensions being formed with a recess T- shaped in cross section, a wedge member slidable within said recess and having its face engagingthe rail web serrated, and means for maintaining the wedge in adjusted positions, said means comprising a pin disposable through a selected one of a series of holes formed in the wedge member.

3. A device of the characterY described comprising a pair of members secured in end to end relation and disposable transversely of a trackway beneath track rails, an upward extension formed at the outer end of each member and having an undercut recess for the reception of the base of a rail and having a fiat face disposable against the outer side of the rail. web, the flat face of one of said extensions being formed with a recess is-shaped in cross section, a wedge member slidable within said recess and having its face engaging the rail web serrated, means for maintaining the wedge in adjusted positiomand block members similar in formation to said extensions and detachably disposed upon said bars and having flat faces adapted for engagement against the inner faces of the rail webs, the flat faces of said block members being formed with recesses, and a wedge member disposed within each of said last named recesses and adapted to clampingly engage the rail web.

In testimony whereof I aiiiX my signatur SAMUEL ENGLISH. 

